How an almost NCAA Football Championship Winning QB's stock has Allegedly fallen because he doesn't play video games well.

I bet if I could look at the "S-2" video test that CJ Stroud allegedly tanked I would figure out why it is a flawed test. Perhaps the test can isolate QB's who are going to be great, while missing others who are also going to be great. In other words, If a QB takes the Video game test and passes with flying colors, then it is a nice security blanket for a team interested in the QB, to rely on. If a QB does not do well on the test, it just means the team does not have that particular security blanket, and that's all it should mean.

Just how close did CJ Stroud come to willing his team to a victory against Georgia and setting up an NCAA  Football 2023 finals match-up between OSU vs TCU? When Stroud made that spectacular 35 yard scramble that brought OSU to just barely out of field goal range with time running out, he most likely was exhausted. But his coach did not know what to do at that point and the team frittered away the next 3 plays, barely gaining a couple of yards. This in turn caused the Field Goal kicker to over kick the ball and shank it left.

Stroud has done too many good things in his career at OSU to be red flagged by a computer screen. My only reservation would be that because at the NFL level the game moves faster, maybe that is what the S-2 test is able to simulate. None the less, I look forward to seeing CJ Stroud prove the S-2 does not separate the real men from A.I.

 

Los Angeles Emmy winning Producer Alessandro Machi combines his editing, camera and observational skills to provide unique insights into the World of Sports.

The Strange case of the 2023 Josh Bell signing by the Cleveland Guardians.

Last season, both before and after the All Star break the Cleveland Guardians had a team .700 OPS. The Cleveland Guardians needed at least a .730 to .740 Team OPS to be a true World Series contender in 2022.
 

But, there is a but.

It wasn't the lack of home run power that was causing the team OPS to fall short. What actually happened is the Guardians would have elevated their second half team OPS to a .730 to .740 OPS of 2022, if not for the second half OPS collapse of Jose Ramirez because of a hand injury. Ramirez still managed around a .770 OPS in the second half, which was way below his well over .900 first half season OPS. But Jose Ramirez aside, several other positions under performed in the post All Star Break 2022 OPS category for the Cleveland Guardians.

Despite Straw, Naylor, Miller and the catching position all hitting well below a .700 OPS in the second half of 2022, the Guardians still managed a .700 OPS in the second half of 2022 because of the improving performances of Kwan, Gonzalez, Gimenez, Ramirez and Rosario all being above the .700 OPS threshold.
 

The signing of Josh Bell that replaces any of the aforementioned 5 core players who all hit well over a .700 OPS after the All Star Break is not only a wash, it also means money that could have gone for signing pitching went to fill a hole that was easily filled from within the organization. 

 

Unfortunately, Josh Bell has basically replaced Oscar Gonzalez's at bats, therefore it is a wash in production, but definitely not in salary. Additionally, unlike Jose Ramirez, Josh Bell will not win games with super human base running effort. Jose Ramirez has already had at least 2 breathtaking slides and plays at home plate that probably less than 10% of all base runners would either attempt, or be called safe if they did attempt. 

 

The other thing that is disconcerting is a player can hit 30 home runs and still produce negative offense! If only Bell ran like Jose Ramirez. It will be interesting to see if the Bell experiment on a team built for speed will prove a success. Sportscam Detective is of the opinion the experiment will look good on paper, but not as good in reality. As a base clogger, Josh Bell needs another power hitter hitting behind him to drive him in with all the walks he will get. The only other true power threat appears to be Mike Zuninio, who is just as slow. 

 

I think unless Bell and Zuninio are in tandem one after the other in the line-up, there will be no improvement worthy of the investment put into Bell, the further irony being it will also mean the Guardians will deprive two prospects each of 300 at bats each, finding out.


Los Angeles Emmy winning Producer Alessandro Machi combines his editing, camera and observational skills to provide unique insights into the World of Sports.